Lab 2-2
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Indiana University, Bloomington *
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Course
109
Subject
Geography
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
4
Uploaded by PresidentQuail3893
PhET – Greenhouse Gases and Their Effect on Earth’s Climate
(
http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/greenhouse
)
Once you have navigated to PhET’s
The Greenhouse Effect
simulation page, select the large
PLAY button in the middle of the simulation window.
To start, let’s examine the influence that photons have on Earth’s atmosphere at the
microscopic scale, and the impact that different photons have on different components of
the atmosphere.
To do this, select the tab labeled “
Photons
” and take a minute to familiarize yourself with
the various settings.
Once you’re ready to begin answering questions, hit the “
Start Sunlight
” button at the
bottom of the right-hand side of the screen.
1.
What are photons? How are
Infrared
and
Visible
photons different from one another?
You may need to do a bit of research in your textbook, or online to answer this
question. (5 marks)
Elementary particles responsible for electromagnetic radiation – the difference between the
Infrard and the visible is that the Infrared are coming from the bottom/the ground – they
also have a longer wavelength as they cannot be seen and the visible are coming from the
top/sky. These have a shorter wavelength and have a lower frequency.
2.
Identify the atmospheric gases listed at the right corner of the screen. You may need
to do a bit of research in your textbook or online to answer this question.
(5 marks)
CO2,CH4, and N2O
3.
The three atmospheric gases you just identified as most influenced by infrared
photons are collectively
referred to as what type of gases? (5 marks)
Greenhouse Gas Concentration
4.
Between what time periods (Ice Age, 1750 CE, 1950, 2020) where does there appear
to be the largest increase in CO
2
concentration? What time periods experience the
largest increase in temperatures? Can you think of any reasons why this might be
the case? Please be as quantitative (numbers!) as possible with your answer. (10
marks)
The largest increase of CO2 was in 2020. Then in 1750 had the largest increase in
temperature.
The reason I think the temperature went up so high is because the first one
was in the artic where it’s the coldest and the rest weren’t in the same area.
5.
Calculate the average rate of increase in CO
2
concentration between 1750 and 2020
(in ppm/year). Use this value, coupled with your findings from the previous
question, to estimate when
the Ice Age happened? Compare your answer to the
accepted value of the date of the most recent Ice Age (you may need to do some
Googling). What might any differences in these values tell you about the how the rate
of increase in CO
2
concentration has changed over time?
Please be sure to show all
of your work here
. (25 marks)
1
The difference in years from 1750-2020 is 27 years. 1750 the CO2 is 277 ppm and
the CO2 for 2020 is 413ppm. Then you subtract 413 minus 277 to get 136 ppm Then
you do 136ppm divided by 270 years which equals .5ppm per year.
CO2 is increasing exponentially.
Add 270 to the answer we got.
Idk got really confused for 2
nd
part
2
We’re now ready to explore the impact that adding varying Absorbing layers has on photons
near earth’s surface. To do this, select the tab on the right corner of the screen labeled
“
Layer Model
.”
Then select “
Absorbing Layers (3)
” on the bottom right corner of the
screen.
Take a minute to familiarize yourself with the various settings before you proceed.
Once you’re ready to begin answering questions, hit the “
Reset All
” button at the bottom of
the right side of the screen and observe
(You could run this simulation multiple time).
6.
What effect does adding absorbing layers have on the system? What leads you to
believe that this is true? Try to incorporate the behavior of the infrared photons into
your answer. (10 marks)
There is more infrared energy, there is more energy going up, the temp is rising
7.
Take out the absorbing layers, what do you notice? (5 marks)
There is still more infrared energy, but the temperature went down and got a lot cooler
8.
How is what you observed similar to the behavior a greenhouse? How do you know?
(5 marks)
Juts like you add layers it made the earth’s temp rises and because warmer
that is the same as the greenhouse because it traps energy in the house
making the earth warmer. But once the sunlight goes down and there is no
energy to trap in the house at nighttime. It gets cooler just like the moidle
shows when you take away layers.
We will conclude by exploring the tab labeled
“Waves”
Take a minute to familiarize yourself
with the various controls.
When you are ready to start answering questions, hit the “
Reset All
” button at the bottom of
the right side of the screen.
9.
What effect does changing the
greenhouse gas concentration
appear to have on
the system? Based on your observation, what leads you to believe that this is true?
(5 marks)
When there is a lot of greenhouse gas concentration the infrared energy doesn’t rise
all the way to the sky it stays toward the ground which gives us heat and high
temperature. But when there is no greenhouse concentration the infrared energy
rises all the way to the sky and makes the temperature a lot cooler. When there is
lots of greenhouse gas concentration it traps the infrared enerhy which causes the
warmer temperatures, but when there is none, it releases causing cooler temps
3
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10.
Based on your observations, what connection can you make between the “activity”
of the atmospheric (
greenhouse
) gas molecules you observed in the first part
(
Photon
) and the temperature of the atmosphere?
(5 marks)
In the activity it shows the visible and infrared energy coming down from the sun and up
from the ground and with different layers in the atmosphere it shows how the temperature
can vary from hot to cold. when there are less layers it is a lot colder and when there is more
layers, it traps more of the heat which causes the temperature to rise.
11.
In your own words, summarize the phenomenon known as the
greenhouse effect
.
Does this seem like an appropriate name for such a phenomenon? Why or why not?
(10 marks)
The greenhouse effect is the process of visible radiation coming down from the sun
and getting trapped in the greenhouse and turning into infrared radiation from the
plants that are in the greenhouse. This process traps the heat from the sun into the
lower part of the amopshere . I think this is an appropriate name because the energy
and heat from the sun is getting trapped in a house full of green plants that has a
effect on
the atmosphere
12.
In your opinion are greenhouse gases (and thus the
greenhouse effect
) a good
thing or a bad thing for Earth and its inhabitants? Be sure to support your opinion
with evidence.
(10 marks)
We need greenhouse gases to trap heat and make our earth warmer, but the downside is
it releases too much infrared / bad things out into the earth.
4